Three Turkish soldiers have been killed and 14 others injured in an attack on May 1 in the Kurdish-dominated southeast, blamed on rebels of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), the Turkish army said.

The attack took place in the Nusaybin district of Mardin Province, just two kilometers from the Syrian border, where a military operation by the army had been under way.

The private Dogan news agency said the PKK opened fire with rockets on an army bomb disposal team.

Violence in southeastern Turkey has surged since a fragile peace process between the state and the rebels of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) collapsed in July 2015.

Over 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict since the PKK took up arms in 1984 demanding Kurdish autonomy.